Every Friday I will list some players who I think, if things go their way, will wind up in those waiver articles the following Tuesday. You don’t have to stash all of them – it depends on who you have on your roster, the depth of your benches, the scoring system of your league, etc. But these are guys that should at least be on your radar.
Stashing players is only something that can occur in deeper leagues with large benches, so to make this information worthwhile, I will only be recommending guys that are under 20% owned on both Yahoo and ESPN, and in many cases, you’ll see percentages in the single digits. If you’re in a league where guys like Parris Campbell (37% on Yahoo, 40.1% on ESPN), Preston Williams (36% on Yahoo, 64.4% on ESPN), or James Robinson (61% Yahoo, 46.9% on ESPN) are on the waiver wire, you’re either in a league too shallow for stashing, or you should go pick those guys up right away.
In addition, for those of you in really deep leagues (16+ teams) we will also include some deep cut players that are rostered in less than 3% of leagues on both Yahoo and ESPN in a section at the end to try and give you the best chance of winning your fantasy league.
Last week was pretty good for ‘The Must Stash’ with Joshua Kelley graduating from the list with over 20% ownership in fantasy leagues. Laviska Shenault and Jerick McKinnon performed well and increased the number of leagues that they are rostered in, but are still rostered in under 20% of fantasy leagues. I would recommend that you prioritize picking them up now if they are still somehow available in your leagues, even though they will not be included on this week’s edition of ‘The Must Stash’ in order to make way for some more fresh faces.
Irv Smith Jr. and Bryan Edwards disappointed but will still have opportunities to succeed in the future. From the ‘Deep Cuts’ section, many of the players busted but there were a few bright spots in Logan Thomas and Mitchell Trubisky. Who made the list(s) this week? Let’s dive in!
The Must Stash
Darrynton Evans, RB, Tennessee Titans (3% on Yahoo, 8% on ESPN)
Darrynton Evans didn’t play in week 1, but if the rookie plays in week 2 against the Jacksonville Jaguars he’s likely to be a hot waiver pickup next week. Last week the Colts running backs had 17 receptions (17 targets) for 142 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown against Jacksonville’s defense. Derrick Henry has never been a great pass-catcher, with his season-high being 18 receptions for 206 receiving yards last year, and Evans was the only other running back that made the 53 man roster. In his senior year at Appalachian State, Evans caught 21 passes for 198 receiving yards and 5 receiving touchdowns.
Keep an eye on #Titans RB Darrynton Evans this week. The Jaguars gave up 17 receptions (17 targets), 142 receiving yards, and a TD to the #Colts RBs last week through the air.
Considering Derrick Henry is not much of a pass-catcher, if Evans is healthy he could have a big week
— Eli G (@3li_handles) September 16, 2020
In addition, Evans was pretty good on the ground as well in college, taking 482 carries for 2884 rushing yards (6.0 YPC) and 25 rushing touchdowns over the course his three-year college career (39 games). While Henry is the bruiser back when he’s healthy, this shows that Evans can handle work on the ground, and makes him an intriguing handcuff – in addition to potentially having some standalone value in PPR values.
Corey Davis, WR, Tennessee Titans (15% on Yahoo, 11% on ESPN)
We have our second player from the Tennessee Titans on the list with former 1st round pick Corey Davis. A lot of fantasy players are tentative to pick up Corey Davis after a strong week 1 performance where he caught seven of eight targets for 101 receiving yards, after being burned by him in the past. But it’s important to remember he’s still only 25 years old, and he was the fifth overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft. He ran routes on 36 plays against the Denver Broncos so the opportunity should be there. There’s always the possibility of a Devante Parker post-hype breakout from Corey Davis, and if you need depth at wide receiver, it might not be a bad idea to give Davis a shot. With A.J. Brown suddenly in doubt for Week 2, Davis is even more of a priority add.
Tre’Quan Smith, WR, New Orleans Saints (5% on Yahoo, 5% on ESPN)
Michael Thomas is going to be out of commission for a few weeks, and the result is that we get to see Tre’Quan Smith get promoted from one of our ‘Deep Cuts’ to a player on ‘The Must Stash’. While many fantasy players are expecting Emmanuel Sanders to have the biggest improvement in fantasy value with Thomas sidelined, Smith should also experience a boost in value. He is only in his third year as an NFL player, and prior to the season his head coach, Sean Payton, suggested that Smith could have a bigger role this season. His quarterback, Drew Brees, said Smith “is a guy who I think is ready to really blossom and just explode in this offense.” He dealt with ankle issues last year, and now that he’s healthy and has got the path to targets we could see Smith break out.
Myles Gaskin, RB, Miami Dolphins (5% on Yahoo, 5% on ESPN)
Miami Dolphins running back Myles Gaskin surprised many fantasy players last week as he took nine carries for 40 yards and caught four passes on four targets for 26 receiving yards. This was shocking because the Dolphins backfield was expected to be a dynamic duo between Jordan Howard and Matt Breida by many analysts, including myself. But in hindsight, Gaskin has been getting a ton of hype by his team since training camp with his RB coach Eric Studesville saying, “Myles has done a great job; head and shoulders above where he was last year. He’s playing more confident, playing faster. We’re starting to see what his potential is.” There is a very real chance that his week 1 usage was not a fluke, and rostering a running back in Chan Gailey’s offense is never a bad idea, as I touched on in this article.
Logan Thomas, TE, Washington Football Team (13% on Yahoo, 4% on ESPN)
Much like Tre’Quan Smith, we saw Logan Thomas get promoted from one of our ‘Deep Cuts’ players to a player on ‘The Must Stash’. While Thomas wasn’t officially the starting tight end last Sunday, he got a majority of the passing work at the position last week for the Washington Football Team with four receptions on eight targets for 37 receiving yards and a touchdown. In Washington, Thomas doesn’t have much competition for targets outside of Terry McLaurin, so he has the opportunity to consistently be featured in the passing game. In addition, he’s got the off-the-charts athleticism that makes his ceiling very high, with Thomas standing 6’6”, running a 4.61 forty yard dash, and having a catch radius that ranks in the 94th percentile according to the site PlayerProfiler.
If you want further information on why Logan Thomas is worth investing in, here is a great article diving into his fantasy potential this season by the QB List’s own Ben Brown.
Deep Cuts
(Less Than 3% owned in ESPN and Yahoo)
La’Mical Perine, RB, New York Jets (2% on Yahoo, 1.4% on ESPN): The Jets placed star running back Le’Veon Bell on injured reserve earlier this week, meaning that for at least the next three weeks the Jets will have to lean on their other backs. While many are going after the ageless wonder, Frank Gore, it’s not a bad idea to also take a strong look at the Jets fourth-round rookie running back, La’Mical Perine. Perine didn’t play in week 1 due to injury, but he should push Gore for snaps if he’s on the field.
Rex Burkhead, RB, New England Patriots (1% on Yahoo, 2.9% on ESPN): The Patriots running back situation can be fairly volatile from week-to-week. One week, Sony Michel will be the main guy. Another week the team may emphasize using James White more. The next week it might be Damien Harris or Rex Burkhead. For this reason, in deeper leagues, it’s not a bad idea to pick up Rex Burkhead and see if he somehow gets the lead back role.
K.J. Hamler, WR, Denver Broncos (1% on Yahoo, 1.2% on ESPN): While it’s unlikely that Hamler has a ton of value behind Courtland Sutton and Jerry Jeudy at wide receiver, he’s a second-round draft pick with a ton of talent. He’s only worth rostering in the deepest of leagues right now, but monitor how he performs when he returns from injury.
Jordan Reed, TE, San Francisco 49ers (2% on Yahoo, 0.6% on ESPN): We just can’t quit you Jordan Reed. Last Sunday, star tight end George Kittle suffered a knee injury and while he returned in the game against the Arizona Cardinals, his status for week 2 is up in the air. Reed has gotten great reviews from training camp and the 49ers are lacking pass-catchers. If Kittle is out a while, Reed could be a great value.
Lamar Miller, RB, Free Agent (0% on Yahoo, 0.6% on ESPN): Lamar Miller may not be on a team right now, but he’s apparently been in conversations with the Indianapolis Colts after running back Marlon Mack suffered an Achilles injury. If he ends up signing in Indianapolis, he could be worth rostering as an early-down handcuff to Jonathan Taylor behind the Colts amazing offensive line.
Quintez Cephus, WR, Detroit Lions (1% on Yahoo, 0.3% on ESPN): The rookie Quintez Cephus got the start last week against the Chicago Bears in place of Kenny Golladay, and he caught three passes on ten targets for 43 receiving yards. Ten targets is hard to ignore and if Golladay’s injury ends up lasting longer than expected, Cephus will have some low-end fantasy value.
Dante Pettis, WR, San Francisco 49ers (0% on Yahoo, 0.2% on ESPN): No Deebo Samuel. Brandon Aiyuk dealing with an injury. And now George Kittle may be out. We had Pettis on the deep cuts last week, but if he doesn’t get any opportunities this week with so many banged-up pass-catchers, he may never be worth rostering.
Trey Burton, TE, Indianapolis Colts (1% on Yahoo, 0.2% on ESPN): As I touched on last week, Burton is worth keeping an eye on based on Frank Reich and Philip Rivers‘s past history of utilizing the tight-end position. Mo Alie-Cox and Jack Doyle weren’t overly impressive in week 1, so Burton could be in-line for opportunities once he makes his return from the injured list.
That’s it for week 1. Feel free to weigh in and mention any players you believe should be on this list.
Featured Image by Justin Paradis (@freshmeatcomm on Twitter)